Abstract

The nudibranch Dendrodoris arborescens (Collingwood, 1881) has hitherto been (1) mistaken for the sympatric species D. nigra (Stimpson, 1855), which is similar in appearance; or (2) considered as a colour form of D. fumata(Rüppell and Leuckart, 1828). However, our investigations linking larval form, morphology and colour pattern, clearly show that D. arborescens is a separate valid species with its own set of unique characteristics. This result increases the number of Dendrodoris species known from Australian to thirteen, highlights the useful nature of larval features to species identification and contributes to the resolution of a previously confusing species complex.